Hyderabad, May 10 : A court here on Friday issued an arrest warrant against former Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) chief T. Prabhakar Rao, the prime suspect in the phone tapping case.

The Nampally Metropolitan Magistrate court also issued an arrest warrant against Shravan Kumar, a senior executive of a vernacular media.

Accepting the Hyderabad Police's plea, the court issued the warrants against the accused who are absconding. Both are believed to be in the US.

The investigating team had filed a petition last month, requesting the court to issue arrest warrants under Section 73 of Criminal Procedure Code.

The case relates to alleged surveillance of opposition leaders and some businessmen by a team of police officers during the Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) rule. The police recently named Prabhakar Rao and Shravan Kumar as accused in the sensational case.

It is now likely to apply for Red Corner notices against them.

The police have already arrested four police officers in the sensational case.

They include former Deputy Commissioner of Police (Task Force) P. Radha Kishan Rao, D. Praneeth Rao, Bhujanga Rao and Thirupathanna are the other accused police officers arrested in the case.

The phone tapping came to light in March when a case was registered with the Panjagutta police after a petition was filed by Additional SP, SIB D. Ramesh.

When the BRS was in power, then SIB chief Prabhakar Rao had allegedly constituted a team within SIB with his trusted aides, including DSP D. Praneeth Rao, for surveillance of rival political leaders and their families and dissidents within the ruling party.

Praneeth Rao was arrested after he allegedly destroyed hard disks and other data after Congress came to power.

Bhujanga Rao, Additional Superintendent of Police in Bhupalpally district and Tirupathanna, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, City Security Wing, Hyderabad City Police were arrested on March 23.

They had earlier served in SIB.

Radha Kishan Rao was arrested last month.

/IANS